Pursuing a noteworthy career in advertising or digital is difficult because of the complexity of the industries. This presentation shares ten key things you must do if you want a chance at success.

1. © 2014 Job Propulsion Lab
Ten steps that will
get your career on
the right path.

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A career that starts
on the wrong path
usually ends there.

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1
2
3 3
Fame Obscurity
Your career path
The
A
B
Y
S
S
Your first two jobs
dictate the path
your career takes.

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1
If your first job is the
wrong job, you learn
the wrong things.

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If your second job is the
wrong job, your portfolio
gets worse, not better.2

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1
2
3 3
Fame Obscurity
Your career path
The
A
B
Y
S
S
Once you’re on the
path to obscurity, it’s
almost impossible to
get on the right path.

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1
2
3 3
Fame Obscurity
Your career path
The
A
B
Y
S
S
So one of your first
two jobs must be
at a great company.

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FACT:
Great companies don’t hire
people from obscure ones.

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Ten things you must do
to get on the right path.

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1. Get help.
Professional training is
a must if you are going
to succeed.
You don’t have time to
learn by trial and error.

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2. Plot your course.
Know what you want.
Target employers.
Create a career plan.

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3. Build the right portfolio.
Your work must show
how you will make your
employer better.

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4. Market yourself.
Use everything you
have learned to brand
and market yourself.

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5. Become a brand.
Everything you do should
support your career goal.
Winning awards is only
part of what makes you
more marketable.

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6. Stalk. Quietly.
Use social media to
learn everything
about your future
employer’s work,
people and culture.

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7. Talk. Loudly.
You’re on display.
Always reflect
professionalism,
especially when
using social media.

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8. Look like a pro.
Your portfolio has to show
you’re ready to do the work
even if you never have.
Used by permission

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8. Look like a pro.
It must contain something
that the company wished it
had done.
Used by permission

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8. Look like a pro.
Don’t rationalize about
your work. If it’s not
good enough, drop it.
Used by permission

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9. Act like a pro.
Social skills are as
important as technical
and creative skills.

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The
Talent-­‐Job
Mismatch.
(Human
Resource
Execu/ve
online)
Employers
responding
to
a
McKinsey
survey
iden8fied
so:
skills
-­‐-­‐
quali8es
such
as
work
ethic,
teamwork
and
communica8on
-­‐-­‐
as
more
cri8cal
than
the
hard
skills,
and
o:en
lacking
in
the
graduates
and
students
they
interview.

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10. Don’t blow the interview.
Your work gets you in
the door. It won’t get
you the job offer.

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FACT:
A job interview is the
“What’s-Wrong-With-This-Person?”
Meeting.

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Success doesn’t happen
by chance.

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Success doesn’t happen
by chance.
Neither does failure.

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Critique@JobPropulsionLab.com
Get a free, brutally honest portfolio critique.

27. © 2014 Job Propulsion Lab
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